


Delayed Discovery

by veroniquemagique



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-10
Updated: 2016-09-10
Packaged: 2018-08-14 06:08:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8001382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/veroniquemagique/pseuds/veroniquemagique
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Korra finally realizes that Lin and Kya are in a relationship, and it seems like she's the only one who didn't know.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Delayed Discovery

“Good morning, kid,” Lin said, sipping on a cup of tea as she read the newspaper, cross legged in the acolyte dining hall. She was relaxing in her usual white undershirt, paired with some more unusual silky blue shorts and an even more unusual pair of fluffy white slippers. Korra stood in the doorway, surprised by both Lin's presence and her attire. She had never seen the stern woman in such an informal, relaxed demeanor before.

“So you gonna stand there with your mouth gaping open or…?” Lin added, still not lifting her gaze from the paper as she flipped the page.

“Oh, uh, sorry. Just kind of surprised to see you,” Korra said as she sat down across from Lin, an acolyte noting her entrance and laying a steaming cup of tea in front of her on the table. “... in pajamas especially.”

“Do you think I sleep in my uniform?” Lin replied, finally looking up to give the girl a strange, quizzical look.

“Well honestly I wouldn't be surprised,” the young woman laughed, taking a mouthful of her tea.

“What are you even doing up so early? You're hardly the early rising type,” Lin asked. The only sounds to be heard from where they were sitting were early morning birds and the few acolytes who were shuffling around quietly. It was a typical morning for Lin, however.

“I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep, and I didn't want to wake Asami,” Korra sighed, resting her chin against her hand.

“How considerate of you,” Lin said, returning her gaze to the news in her hands.

“What are you doing here though? And when did you get here? I didn't see you yesterday evening at all,” Korra asked after a few minutes of peaceful silence. Never long enough, Lin thought.

“I took a later ship in and wasn't able to catch one back to the city,” Lin explained, “so I stayed over. Do it all the time,” she shrugged.

“Don't you find it weird though? Sleeping at your ex’s house?” Korra raised an eyebrow at the Chief.

“No? I practically grew up here,” Lin replied, quickly giving the page she was on one last skim before quickly flipping it onwards.

“Oh,” Korra said, all out of questions for the older woman. She sipped on her tea some more as the silence returned, and after she downed the last mouthful, she stood up with a big stretch, her night shirt bunching up her abdomen slightly. As she went to leave the dining hall, she paused and looked behind her at Lin, still absorbed in the ever-so-interesting tales of Republic City.

“Hey Lin,” Korra began.

“Yes?” Lin replied without even looking up.

“What's with the slippers? You don't strike me as much of a “big fluffy slippers” type of person,” Korra continued.

“Well that would be because I'm not. I borrowed these from Kya - the floors around here get pretty cold overnight.”

“Oh, okay,” Korra said without much thought, continuing her walk out of the room, leaving Lin alone with her tea and paper once more.

As she walking through the buildings to reach her favourite meditation spot, Korra stopped as she finally processed the conversation in her sleepy haze.

Wait, Kya?

-

When Korra returned to the island with her friends for supper, she was surprised to see Lin still hanging around. Unlike their earlier run in, there were many others around the tables now, filling the room with chatter and warmth.

As she sat down next to her girlfriend, Korra somewhat absentmindedly watched the metalbender. She was sitting between Kya and Ikki, and was currently engaged with a conversation with the older woman to her left. After a few minutes, Korra thought she saw Kya lean in close to Lin for a moment, and Lin looked directly over at the Avatar, with a confused and disgruntled expression.

“Why are you staring at me?” Lin asked bluntly. Korra’s eyes went wide and she scrambled trying to deny that she had been watching the woman.

“I-I wasn't! What are you, too good to be looked at?”

“I'd say she's just good enough to look at,” Kya interjected, pinching Lin's cheek quickly before her hand was swatted away.

Korra’s eyes narrowed as she looked back and forth between the two of them.

“Lin, could I speak to you outside for a moment?” She asked, her head nodding in the direction behind her before she stood up and proceeded to walk that way. Lin raised an eyebrow curiously at the request, but shrugged it off and followed the younger woman outside the dining hall.

“Can I help you?” Lin asked as she stopped in front of Korra, resting one hand on her hip and the other against the pillar next to her.

“Are you and Kya… yknow? I've never really seen you two talk much before but-”

“Wait a minute - you're not just figuring this out are you?” Lin genuinely laughed, taking Korra by surprise, but also filling her with confusion. When she didn't answer, Lin laid her hand on the girl's shoulder and continued.

“Korra, Kya and I have been together - and I mean _like a couple_ \- for years. We've been together longer than you've been alive!” Lin continued to laugh at the delayed discovery. “Where do you think I sleep when I'm here? In the Sky Bison barn?”

“Jeez I feel stupid…” Korra facepalmed with a groan.

“Don't. It's not a big deal. Took a lot of people a while to realize you and Asami were a couple,” Lin said softly. “I called it though.”

Korra shook of the idea of the older woman making bets on her love life with a shudder.

“So Lin Beifong is into women.” Korra laughed quietly.

“It seems to be a Beifong thing, I guess,” Lin shrugged. “Toph didn't really care who her little flings were with, and Su’s always been very… adventurous, so it was almost inevitable really,” Lin said, patting Korra on the back. She gestured for the two of them to return to the table as she noticed the acolytes begin to bring supper. Korra nodded and they began to make their way to their seats. Just as they were in the door frame, Korra stopped and looked at Lin.

“Wait, Toph? _Su_?” Korra asked frantically.

“Those are stories for another time,” Lin chuckled as she sat down to her plate.

“What did she want?” Kya leaned over and whispered to Lin.

“She _just_ realized that we're together.”

Kya burst out in such a fit of laughter that it was a blessing she was not working on a mouthful of food.

“Either you're completely unobservant, kid, or we're getting good at this subtly thing about thirty years too late,” Kya said to Korra. The girl's face flushed red.

“You really didn't see it?” Asami whispered to her girlfriend. Korra groaned. Was she the only one who didn't know Lin was dating Kya? It sure felt like it to her.

 


End file.
